JACK LONDON’S “THE LIFE I HAVE UNDERSTOOD”: ITS STUDY AND TRANSLATIONS

Abstract

This article examines Jack London’s autobiographical essay The Life I Have Understood often published as What Life Means to Me through an interdisciplinary framework that integrates literary analysis, critical reception, and translation history. The Introduction situates the essay within early-twentieth-century American naturalism and Progressive Era thought, highlighting London’s interplay of rugged individualism and socialist critique. The Methodology combines close textual reading with a survey of scholarly interpretations and a historical review of Russian, German, Japanese, and Uzbek translations. Results show that the essay functions as both personal testament and socio-political commentary, inspiring diverse interpretations: Marxist critics emphasize class struggle, feminist scholars probe gendered rhetoric, and postcolonial analyses reveal implicit reflections on race and empire. Translation studies further demonstrate how cultural contexts shape London’s global reception, with each linguistic community producing distinct emphases and meanings. The Discussion underscores the essay’s enduring relevance as a transnational cultural artifact, illustrating how literary works acquire new significance when mediated by different critical paradigms and translation practices.